How to Write a Cleaning Quote That Converts

Cleaning quotes need to balance speed and clarity. Here is how to price domestic, office, and specialist cleaning so clients book.

Cleaning is a high volume, low ticket trade. You will quote ten jobs a week, sometimes twenty. The faster and clearer your quotes are, the more you book. The looser your scope is, the more you argue at the door on day one.

This guide covers how to write cleaning quotes that close fast without giving away your margin.

Decide your pricing model

There are three honest ways to price cleaning: per hour, per square metre, or per scope. Pick the one that fits the job, not the one that is easiest to type.

• Hourly: best for once off domestic cleans and small jobs
• Per square metre: best for office, retail, and post construction cleans
• Per scope: best for monthly recurring contracts with a fixed task list

A tool built for quotes and invoices for cleaners lets you save all three models so you can quote any job in two minutes.

Always quote the scope, not just the time

"Three hours of cleaning" is not a quote. It is a recipe for a fight. Write down what gets cleaned, what does not, and how often. The client should be able to read your quote and know exactly what they are getting.

Scope template for a domestic clean

• Kitchen: counters, sink, hob, outside of cupboards, floor, bin
• Bathrooms: shower, bath, basin, toilet, mirrors, floor
• Bedrooms: dusting, bed making, vacuum, surfaces
• Living areas: dusting, vacuum, surfaces, glass tops
• Excluded: inside ovens, inside fridges, windows above ground floor, ironing

Office cleaning is a different animal

Office work is recurring, contract based, and bid against other companies. Price it per square metre per visit, with a clear task list per visit and a separate task list for monthly deep cleans. Save that structure as one of your free quote templates and it works whether you have one client or fifty.

Office quote essentials

• Square metres cleaned per visit
• Visit frequency (e.g. 3 x per week)
• Standard tasks per visit
• Periodic tasks (monthly, quarterly)
• Consumables included or excluded (toilet paper, hand soap, bin liners)
• After hours surcharge if applicable

Specialist cleans need their own pricing

Carpet cleaning, upholstery, post construction, and post move cleans should never be priced at general cleaning rates. They take more time, more product, and specialist machines. Build per square metre carpet rates with separate prices for stain treatment, deodorising, and protection, and check the totals in a free quote calculator.

Sample specialist add-ons

• Carpet steam clean: $ 28 per square metre
• Stain treatment, per stain: $ 95
• Upholstery clean, two seater couch: $ 650
• Post construction deep clean: $ 65 per square metre
• Inside oven clean: $ 380
• Window clean, internal and external: $ 22 per pane

Quote turnaround matters

Cleaning clients shop fast. If you take 48 hours to send a quote, they have already booked someone else. Aim for a quote out within two hours of the call or site visit. Use a template, fill in the variables, send.

The other cleaning services trades win on speed in the same way. Most cleaners cut their quote time from 30 minutes to 3 minutes when they switch off email and onto a structured tool.

Recurring contracts and price reviews

Build an annual price review clause into every recurring contract. Something simple: "Pricing reviewed annually in line with CPI plus minimum wage adjustments." That sentence will save you thousands when staff costs jump.

The bottom line

A good cleaning quote is fast, scoped, and easy to read. Lock in your three pricing models, build a template for each, and quote within two hours. Win on speed and clarity, not on cutting your rate.

Want to put this into practice? QuoteGenio handles quotes and invoices for cleaners, mobile-first, with no spreadsheets and no after-hours admin.